Named among the “Lawsuits of the Year” by Minnesota Law & Politics, the hot civil rights dispute between GLBT Pride/Twin Cities and the Star Tribune was recently settled. The amicable resolution owed much to the lawyering skills of Eileen Scallen, professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law, who represented GLBT Pride/Twin Cities on a pro bono basis.
According to Star Tribune news stories and public court documents, the dispute arose in 2004, when the Star Tribune refused to run an ad, which featured two men kissing, for the Twin Cities Pride Celebration, calling it offensive to community standards. The two organizations had an advertising contract, and the newspaper had historically been a major event sponsor and a supporter of gay rights editorially, making the situation more complex. The parties failed to resolve the matter before the Celebration, and GLBT Pride/Twin Cities subsequently contacted Outfront, a leading GLBT rights advocacy group, and connected with Scallen, who serves on that board.
An arduous two-year legal process ensued, including a stalemated attempt to bring the matter before the Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights, which decided the case was outside its jurisdiction. This forced Scallen to file a civil suit on behalf of GLBT Pride/Twin Cities. The argument centered on whether the Star Tribune was exercising First Amendment rights in controlling newspaper content, or whether, in the context of commercial speech, they were applying inconsistent standards by publishing ads that featured members of the opposite sex kissing, but not same-sex couples.
The case became a major part of Scallen’s workload, and she is grateful for how supportive William Mitchell was of her public service efforts. She also credits the hardworking volunteers at GLBT Pride/Twin Cities for inspiring her.
Some of Scallen's current Civil Procedure students were able to attend one of the major court proceedings and two current second-year students, Zaidee Martin and Joe Miller, and one recent William Mitchell graduate, John Conard '06, provided pro bono research assistance on the case.
Hennepin County District Court Judge Lloyd Zimmerman ordered the two parties to meet and make another attempt to come to an outside settlement, noting that they were all people of good will. He was also highly complimentary of the scholarliness and wit of the briefs filed, commenting later that “Professor Scallen proves you don’t have to be boring to be a great lawyer.”
The settlement was announced on November 14, 2006, and while details have not been made public, GLBT Pride/Twin Cities has dropped its lawsuit, and the Star Tribune will once again sponsor the Twin Cities Pride Celebration at the highest level in 2007.